Introducing 13 week old chicken to 6 week olds

[IvoryStorm]

First of all, thank you to this community for always helping me with questions. Y'all have really helped out a newbie.

I just got a 13 week old chicken (unexpectedly) yesterday and I currently have three 6 week old chicks. We've put the older one in a cage in our bathroom while the chicks can run around it.

I have a lot of questions that focus on how to integrate them best.

1. Should we move them to an outside run together and leave the 13 week old in the cage for a week or two? If so should we ever let her out or just full 24/7 in the cage in the run?
2. Is it safe to introduce such small chicks to such a large hen? The 13week is about 3x the size of our 6week olds.
3. Is it normal for such a large hen to peck and stalk small 6week old chicks when put in a run together and continuously peck them no matter where they run to?
4. What kind of behavior should I be ok with and what should I step in on and stop?
5. How long will the "pecking" last before they all get along?

Any other advice would be great, I am worried about the 13week killing one or more of our 6week olds at night if we let them in the run altogether so young.

These are our first chicks.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I would wait. The older ones are still immature and will probably attack the younger ones. I would pen them next to each other for at least a 2-4 weeks before trying supervised mingling. Your young ones are too young to handle anything too rough.

I would also make sure there's plenty of places for smaller birds to escape, and not get cornered.

 

[aart]

I just got a 13 week old chicken (unexpectedly) yesterday and I currently have three 6 week old chicks. We've put the older one in a cage in our bathroom while the chicks can run around it.

Time to go out the the coop full time.
Put them all in at once(reducing any territoriality issues) and see what happens, use the cage again if necessary.

Here's some tips about......
Integration Basics:
It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.
Good ideas for hiding places:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/